As a fellow veteran, you hit the nail on the head, I came back so I was supposed to be fine, thankfully I live near a great VA with a great PTSD unit. The homeless rate is really high as well but it’s hard to explain to people as they think it’s a choice. I have triggers, and I have a service dog, she helps but thanks for putting a light to this.
A profound thank you Adam. I sincerely hope you have some political aspirations in the not too distant future as the VA could sure use someone with your character, ethical standards, experience.
Thank you, Adam, for writing this important piece. The fact that the VA is giving $53M towards suicide prevention is a good start. What I would like to see happen, with all branches of the military is, assessment and treatment of all returning members from deployment. From personal experience, (I am an Army Vet) I know that asking a service member “how their mental health is” doesn’t always result in the truth, due to the stigma that you referenced. PTSD doesn’t always result in suicide, but it can have other devastating effects such as the breakdown of a family. This happened to my daughter (who is an Iraq war veteran) when her now, ex husband, came back from his two deployments to the Middle East. He received no sort of treatment, counseling etc. when he returned home. He started exhibiting all the signs of PTSD that you mentioned; anger, rage, drug & alcohol abuse and physical and emotional abuse. To protect her children, my daughter divorced him, which then brings a myriad of new problems. There was another big factor in the divorce that I can’t mention here, but suffice it to say, the Army, particularly his Command, did nothing to help the situation once they were made aware of it. The mental health of our service members has a far reaching effect on the population as a whole. Thanks for letting me vent about this problem that has been going on way too long.
Adam, thank you for your unique perspective of someone who has lived through and experienced life in the military, what most of us will never know. The suicide rate for veterans is unconscionable and addressing this is long overdue as you have said. The 1% of our fellow countrymen/women keeping the rest of us 99% safe deserve so much more than they are getting. Let this be the first step in meeting their needs at any level.
I served in Iraq as an RN in a combat support hospital in 2006-07. One factor I saw in how soldiers dealt/deal with being in a war zone, is their age. Older soldiers with more life experience seemed to weather the stresses and psychological microtraumas of dealing with war and wounded people perhaps better than their younger counterparts.
I have always felt that an age requirement of 23-25 before personnel can be mobilized to a combat zone would lower the suicide rate. 18 is way too young for anyone to be in a combat zone.
It was 1972 and my friends and I drove to a weekend bluegrass festival where we would be camping. This was in NC mountains. I had the BIG tent - a canvas monstrosity with outside poles to hold it up. It was around 10' by 12'. If you have ever been to one of these, especially in that time, it was all about the people and well moonshine and other stuff. You would walk from campsite to campsite where folks had instruments out and everyone was playing and singing. It was amazing.
I saw a guy that was alone, off to himself, and I went over to ask how he was. Sometimes folks got a hold of something that they did not know how they would respond to it, if you know what I mean. Anyway, he was not on drugs or alcohol, but was shaking. I talked with him and found out that he had just gotten back from Viet Nam.
Some fireworks started up and he lost it. I took him back to our tent, put him in a sleeping bag and climbed up behind him and just held onto him while the fireworks continued. He was shaking so badly. He finally calmed and fell asleep.
It impacted me severely. I talked with everyone I knew about it to understand more. I never saw that guy again, but I felt a strong sense of bonding with him.
These guys had one more hurdle to jump when they came home. People took the war out on the soldiers instead of the administration. They were spat upon and shamed.
I don't even remember his name. I hope he made it.
Audie Murphy was among the first to bring PTSD to public attention. I had an uncle who was in the 101st Airborne in WWII and who had to parachute into Nazi Germany. The Boozefighters and Hell's Angels were started by WWII veterans who could not adjust to life in society but felt part of the biker lifestyle.
We all suffer from PTSD in that our lives are touched by violence and suffering. The Hamas invasion of Israel is among the latest incidents. School shootings, COVID deaths, all of this effects most everyone.
Veterans of Vietnam were spat on. Agent Orange gave those who hadn't been wounded leukemia and other blood cancers later in life. Iraq and Afghanistan vets have severe problems from many things involved with their service.
Care for all veterans does go beyond a thank you. They need the support of the American people in every way.
53 years ago men and women like myself were involved in a very unpopular conflict. Just the seething dislike for the military affected us everyday. We came home and did not talk much. Thankfully, the military is more respected today. Your article is clearly heads up. Still the country would be better off if all those between the ages of 19-21 were required to serve their country for 2 years. Not necessarily in military roles, but in community roles as well. The < than 1% that serve now will not be enough to sustain our freedom in the future.
I SO wish that would be a requirement for young folks. Mandatory military/community service. No exceptions. College/political connections, go also. Myself military & Vietnam veteran also. I think people would be more thoughtful, if their children were directly involved, in our country's military operations worldwide.
Thank you for bringing this up!!I’m glad to see that the military is doing more with Veterans and others in the military and mental health!!My dad was in the Air Force in the 60’s and still receives care at the VA in Canandaigua NY.They think that he might have come in contact with Agent Orange and are keeping an eye on his health and well-being!
Positive thoughts go out to your dad. Military should step up even more, seems like they are. I was USAF & Vietnam; have some kidney problems. Turned in military paperwork, medical records, to VA about yr. ago to see if A/O & my kidney issues were related. VA replied shortly afterwards, stating that I was, indeed, exposed to A/O. Also stated that my type kidney disease, was NOT proven to be caused by A/O. Overall, my health is still real good though. Again, salute to your pops!
I'm sorry they do not recognize your type of kidney disease. That is SO wrong! Is there anyone we could all write to trying to get them to relook at their diagnosis?? In the meantime, I'm glad your health is real good and I thank you for your service!🇺🇸
Thanks. VA rejection is a done deal. Talked with law firm that specializes in Veterans issues, sent them paperwork, they said "no case" as of now. Also talked with my urologist. He said he couldn't prove my kidney disease was service related. It's cool. I've seen enough very bad things happen to people, that I have the wisdom to know, that I still have it very good. lol
I was an RN at the VA for almost 25 Years. I always told my patients
You have served us
Now let us serve you
PTSD is a very real thing.
The very things you have described I have seen many times in the men and women we have seen at the VA.
Our Veterans are our greatest heros
They protect and preserve our freedoms.
And whether it is throughout their lives or in death they gave and continue to give our nation their all.
Many come back changed forever. I have so many stories of veterans who suffered daily from PTSD. And just as many who suffer physical disability from when they served. Which also is a big contributor to PTSD.
They deserve our all. They really really do.
I know I can look at myself straight in the eye because I know I gave my all everyday.
This grant for mental illness is well overdue.
But you can't ask me because I am always feeling we need to give more !!!!!!
I'm gonna say it.
What we need to give our military is our votes to Biden who will absolutely protect our freedoms
Honoring the constitution and our democracy is honoring our Veterans .
Amen, sister! I tell my vets that if someone comes by with a sleeve pinned up, we pity them, but someone comes by who’s a seething, simmering ball of wrath, most people won’t know to ask if they have combat related PTSD.
I will say that yes with all the flaws the VA has there are so many unsung heros that work at the VA and believe in what they do. Anyone Suicidal during career was always taken very seriously.
Thank you so much for your supportive words it means so much to me.
Thanks Adam!! Having seen this first hand after a year of AD following 9-11 with my ANG unit, I agree it is definitely needed. Reading this brings back flashbacks of many Air EVAC fights to Ramstein from the "box" and then, back to Dover. The Dover flights with wounded were tough, those with the fallen were much tougher...
"Never Being Able to Match the Feeling Again" as it pertains to those of us there, I completely agree. Without my fellow crew members and support personnel the stresses would have been unbearable. We kept close watch on each other and thankfully all faired well. Those folks are a once in a lifetime experience and we still remain in close contact.
The service members of today deserve the very best we can give them in dealing with PTSD, no less. There used to be a "Wingman" program in the AF/ANG, trust it still around for them...
Adam, thank you so much for writing about mental health along with mental illness. Your words are very informative and a unique perspective.
As Elaine states in her post ,and I agree , there is still a very real stigma in our great country when it comes to mental illness.
May I suggest one thing when we talk about someone taking their own life….Instead of using the words “committed suicide” please try using “died by suicide” or “took their own life “ . As a family member of someone who has died by suicide, it is slightly easier on our grieving hearts to read or hear died by suicide than committed suicide. Thanks.
Veteran suicide is by no means a mental illness; it’s an all too common result of normal people who had experiences that they feel left them no way out. It’s death of the innocent.
well said and love the insights through the eyes of someone who's been there done that...so glad to hear that the Veteran’s Administration is putting their money where there mouth is to help! It's a start...
As a fellow veteran, you hit the nail on the head, I came back so I was supposed to be fine, thankfully I live near a great VA with a great PTSD unit. The homeless rate is really high as well but it’s hard to explain to people as they think it’s a choice. I have triggers, and I have a service dog, she helps but thanks for putting a light to this.
Quite profound, Adam. Thank you for writing about this, as there is still a stigma about mental illness to begin with, let alone the military.
Thanks for this -- so very important.
Reminds me of the lyrics to a song that a good friend wrote on this topic:
'It’s not your fault that you didn’t ask
I always put on a pretty good act
Smiling right through the sadness
When all along I’ve been
Quietly wasting away
Quietly wasting away'*
Too often we need to feel like we must put on a good act, otherwise we will be tagged as "weak"... when just the opposite is true.
* I have his permission to use this.
A profound thank you Adam. I sincerely hope you have some political aspirations in the not too distant future as the VA could sure use someone with your character, ethical standards, experience.
Thank you, Adam, for writing this important piece. The fact that the VA is giving $53M towards suicide prevention is a good start. What I would like to see happen, with all branches of the military is, assessment and treatment of all returning members from deployment. From personal experience, (I am an Army Vet) I know that asking a service member “how their mental health is” doesn’t always result in the truth, due to the stigma that you referenced. PTSD doesn’t always result in suicide, but it can have other devastating effects such as the breakdown of a family. This happened to my daughter (who is an Iraq war veteran) when her now, ex husband, came back from his two deployments to the Middle East. He received no sort of treatment, counseling etc. when he returned home. He started exhibiting all the signs of PTSD that you mentioned; anger, rage, drug & alcohol abuse and physical and emotional abuse. To protect her children, my daughter divorced him, which then brings a myriad of new problems. There was another big factor in the divorce that I can’t mention here, but suffice it to say, the Army, particularly his Command, did nothing to help the situation once they were made aware of it. The mental health of our service members has a far reaching effect on the population as a whole. Thanks for letting me vent about this problem that has been going on way too long.
Adam, thank you for your unique perspective of someone who has lived through and experienced life in the military, what most of us will never know. The suicide rate for veterans is unconscionable and addressing this is long overdue as you have said. The 1% of our fellow countrymen/women keeping the rest of us 99% safe deserve so much more than they are getting. Let this be the first step in meeting their needs at any level.
I served in Iraq as an RN in a combat support hospital in 2006-07. One factor I saw in how soldiers dealt/deal with being in a war zone, is their age. Older soldiers with more life experience seemed to weather the stresses and psychological microtraumas of dealing with war and wounded people perhaps better than their younger counterparts.
I have always felt that an age requirement of 23-25 before personnel can be mobilized to a combat zone would lower the suicide rate. 18 is way too young for anyone to be in a combat zone.
I'm pretty sure the trauma literature confirms your observation.
It was 1972 and my friends and I drove to a weekend bluegrass festival where we would be camping. This was in NC mountains. I had the BIG tent - a canvas monstrosity with outside poles to hold it up. It was around 10' by 12'. If you have ever been to one of these, especially in that time, it was all about the people and well moonshine and other stuff. You would walk from campsite to campsite where folks had instruments out and everyone was playing and singing. It was amazing.
I saw a guy that was alone, off to himself, and I went over to ask how he was. Sometimes folks got a hold of something that they did not know how they would respond to it, if you know what I mean. Anyway, he was not on drugs or alcohol, but was shaking. I talked with him and found out that he had just gotten back from Viet Nam.
Some fireworks started up and he lost it. I took him back to our tent, put him in a sleeping bag and climbed up behind him and just held onto him while the fireworks continued. He was shaking so badly. He finally calmed and fell asleep.
It impacted me severely. I talked with everyone I knew about it to understand more. I never saw that guy again, but I felt a strong sense of bonding with him.
These guys had one more hurdle to jump when they came home. People took the war out on the soldiers instead of the administration. They were spat upon and shamed.
I don't even remember his name. I hope he made it.
Audie Murphy was among the first to bring PTSD to public attention. I had an uncle who was in the 101st Airborne in WWII and who had to parachute into Nazi Germany. The Boozefighters and Hell's Angels were started by WWII veterans who could not adjust to life in society but felt part of the biker lifestyle.
We all suffer from PTSD in that our lives are touched by violence and suffering. The Hamas invasion of Israel is among the latest incidents. School shootings, COVID deaths, all of this effects most everyone.
Veterans of Vietnam were spat on. Agent Orange gave those who hadn't been wounded leukemia and other blood cancers later in life. Iraq and Afghanistan vets have severe problems from many things involved with their service.
Care for all veterans does go beyond a thank you. They need the support of the American people in every way.
This may be the best and most important article you’ve ever written. It could help save a life.
Absolutely
53 years ago men and women like myself were involved in a very unpopular conflict. Just the seething dislike for the military affected us everyday. We came home and did not talk much. Thankfully, the military is more respected today. Your article is clearly heads up. Still the country would be better off if all those between the ages of 19-21 were required to serve their country for 2 years. Not necessarily in military roles, but in community roles as well. The < than 1% that serve now will not be enough to sustain our freedom in the future.
I SO wish that would be a requirement for young folks. Mandatory military/community service. No exceptions. College/political connections, go also. Myself military & Vietnam veteran also. I think people would be more thoughtful, if their children were directly involved, in our country's military operations worldwide.
Thank you for bringing this up!!I’m glad to see that the military is doing more with Veterans and others in the military and mental health!!My dad was in the Air Force in the 60’s and still receives care at the VA in Canandaigua NY.They think that he might have come in contact with Agent Orange and are keeping an eye on his health and well-being!
Positive thoughts go out to your dad. Military should step up even more, seems like they are. I was USAF & Vietnam; have some kidney problems. Turned in military paperwork, medical records, to VA about yr. ago to see if A/O & my kidney issues were related. VA replied shortly afterwards, stating that I was, indeed, exposed to A/O. Also stated that my type kidney disease, was NOT proven to be caused by A/O. Overall, my health is still real good though. Again, salute to your pops!
I'm sorry they do not recognize your type of kidney disease. That is SO wrong! Is there anyone we could all write to trying to get them to relook at their diagnosis?? In the meantime, I'm glad your health is real good and I thank you for your service!🇺🇸
Thanks. VA rejection is a done deal. Talked with law firm that specializes in Veterans issues, sent them paperwork, they said "no case" as of now. Also talked with my urologist. He said he couldn't prove my kidney disease was service related. It's cool. I've seen enough very bad things happen to people, that I have the wisdom to know, that I still have it very good. lol
Love your wisdom and I can tell you have a great laugh 😜!! These life-tools are the best medicine, right!!
I was an RN at the VA for almost 25 Years. I always told my patients
You have served us
Now let us serve you
PTSD is a very real thing.
The very things you have described I have seen many times in the men and women we have seen at the VA.
Our Veterans are our greatest heros
They protect and preserve our freedoms.
And whether it is throughout their lives or in death they gave and continue to give our nation their all.
Many come back changed forever. I have so many stories of veterans who suffered daily from PTSD. And just as many who suffer physical disability from when they served. Which also is a big contributor to PTSD.
They deserve our all. They really really do.
I know I can look at myself straight in the eye because I know I gave my all everyday.
This grant for mental illness is well overdue.
But you can't ask me because I am always feeling we need to give more !!!!!!
I'm gonna say it.
What we need to give our military is our votes to Biden who will absolutely protect our freedoms
Honoring the constitution and our democracy is honoring our Veterans .
Amen, sister! I tell my vets that if someone comes by with a sleeve pinned up, we pity them, but someone comes by who’s a seething, simmering ball of wrath, most people won’t know to ask if they have combat related PTSD.
So so true❤️
*for suicide prevention
JAH, thank you for your service🇺🇸! 25 years is a huge amount of service! So much pain you witnessed! They were blessed to have you!!
My question is have you received the support you need/ed after what you witnessed?? I'm praying you did/do!🙏
I will say that yes with all the flaws the VA has there are so many unsung heros that work at the VA and believe in what they do. Anyone Suicidal during career was always taken very seriously.
Thank you so much for your supportive words it means so much to me.
And yes i definitely we all supported each other
Omg that sounded like word salad lol
Yes i got the support I needed from my co workers many who were like family. We supported each other.
I understood your "salad"! We speak the same language 😊! I'm happy you got the support! Thanks again for your very important service!
Thanks Adam!! Having seen this first hand after a year of AD following 9-11 with my ANG unit, I agree it is definitely needed. Reading this brings back flashbacks of many Air EVAC fights to Ramstein from the "box" and then, back to Dover. The Dover flights with wounded were tough, those with the fallen were much tougher...
"Never Being Able to Match the Feeling Again" as it pertains to those of us there, I completely agree. Without my fellow crew members and support personnel the stresses would have been unbearable. We kept close watch on each other and thankfully all faired well. Those folks are a once in a lifetime experience and we still remain in close contact.
The service members of today deserve the very best we can give them in dealing with PTSD, no less. There used to be a "Wingman" program in the AF/ANG, trust it still around for them...
Adam, thank you so much for writing about mental health along with mental illness. Your words are very informative and a unique perspective.
As Elaine states in her post ,and I agree , there is still a very real stigma in our great country when it comes to mental illness.
May I suggest one thing when we talk about someone taking their own life….Instead of using the words “committed suicide” please try using “died by suicide” or “took their own life “ . As a family member of someone who has died by suicide, it is slightly easier on our grieving hearts to read or hear died by suicide than committed suicide. Thanks.
Veteran suicide is by no means a mental illness; it’s an all too common result of normal people who had experiences that they feel left them no way out. It’s death of the innocent.
well said and love the insights through the eyes of someone who's been there done that...so glad to hear that the Veteran’s Administration is putting their money where there mouth is to help! It's a start...